Increasing Foreign Company Profits

With most of the world having financial problems, it is no wonder that so many companies are now trying their luck in the Asia Pacific. 2013 will no doubt be a make it or break it year for many companies in the region. In particularly for companies who struggle to understand the business culture in the Asia Pacific asserts Peter Karlsson from Profits And People.

In the 1970ies hundreds of thousands of jobs were lost in the northern Europe when the Koreans took over the ship building market. They won with a basic formula: Lower wages and better competitor intelligence. Europeans, Australians and Americans always curse the lower Asian wages that they cannot compete with, but they often forget the competitor intelligence part.

Asian companies are still much better at competitor intelligence than European, Australian and American companies. Foreign companies need to close this gap in order to compete successfully in the Asia Pacific. Most Asian companies also take a more long-term strategic view and this gives them a competitive advantage.

Improved competitor intelligence can improve profit margins and overall profitability very quickly. When stakeholders expect to see immediate results, this is an area that shouldn’t be overlooked. Convincing impatient stakeholders to support a more long term strategic plan can be difficult but will also be essential if companies want to compete in the long term in the Asia Pacific.